Looking Good

Published 7:00 pm, Tuesday, April 28, 2009

"Baseball is supposed to be fun," said Wayland Baptist junior right-hander Todd Weldon.

Wayland 10, Lubbock Christian 5

On Tuesday night, Weldon and his Wayland teammates had an absolute blast as the No. 23 Pioneers upset top-ranked Lubbock Christian, 10-5, at Wilder Field.

The fun began for the Pioneers in the bottom of the first inning when they got to Chap starter Rene Garcia for six runs and six hits. Two batters after senior second baseman Brett Cook led off with a single, senior catcher Brett Sheppard got the party started with a two-run homer to left against a stiff southeasterly wind.

"He hung a slider and I got my hands extended and hit it hard," Sheppard said of Garcia's pitch that sailed over the wall.

Franky Busani kept the momentum going with a single to center. After Todd Jeffress walked to set up designated hitter Keith Martin's RBI-single to right, first baseman Josh Lucas crushed a three-run homer - also against the wind - to make it 6-0.

The Pioneers extended the lead to 8-0 in the third when Pedro Gomez, who hit a one-out single and advanced to third on Brett Cook's single down the right field line, scored on a squeeze bunt by shortstop Eddie Allen. Sheppard then followed with a single to drive in Cook.

Weldon's fun subsided momentarily in the fourth inning when he gave up five earned runs on three hits and two walks. Chap right fielder Tanner Rindles did a majority of the damage when he blasted a three-run homer on what Weldon admitted was a "bad pitch."

"I got a little too comfortable and didn't hit my spots like I did in the first three innings," said the Carlsbad, N.M., native.

Weldon regrouped and put the Chaps down 1-2-3 in the next two innings.

WBU tacked on additional insurance runs in the fourth and fifth innings to complete the scoring.

Weldon (11-3) went 6 1/3 innings, allowing five runs and three hits while walking seven and striking out 10. He also set the single-season record for strikeouts by a Pioneers pitcher with 117, eclipsing the mark of 110 set by Darren Davis in 2007.

Senior left-hander Jason Kimzey took over for Weldon and finished with 2 2/3 innings of strong relief.

"It's awesome to see Kimzey throwing this well," said Wayland coach Brad Bass.

Garcia (8-1), who entered the game with a conference-best 2.53 ERA, took the loss for the Chaps. He lasted only 2 2/3 innings, giving up eight earned runs on nine hits while walking three and striking out five.

Wayland, which has won 15 of its last 16 games, improved to 40-11 overall and 19-9 in the SAC. It marks the fourth time the Pioneers have reached the 40-win plateau. The 2008 team set the school record for wins with 43.

The Chaps (42-6, 23-4) have dropped two straight conference games in a row, having lost to Rogers State, 18-8, on Saturday in Lubbock.

The win over the top-ranked team in NAIA was a definite boost to Wayland's confidence.

"(The win) goes to show we are a good team and we are going to stick around in the post-season," Sheppard said. "We are no joke.

"All (of) our bats are hot and we are playing the way we should have been playing all season," he added.

The teams continue their three-games series at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Hays Field in Lubbock. Sophomore Trevor Stringer, who beat LCU in Lubbock as a true freshman, is expected to get the start for Wayland.

The series concludes at 6:30 p.m. Friday when the teams return to Wilder Filed for the regular-season finale.